Today in Japanese history, January 3 marks the formal beginning of the Meiji Restoration.
In 1868, on this day, the new imperial government proclaimed the “restoration” of imperial rule, effectively ending Tokugawa authority and inaugurating one of the most dramatic political resets in world history. Feudal domains would soon be dismantled, the samurai class dissolved, and Japan would remake itself with astonishing speed into a modern nation-state.
It wasn’t as easy as I made it sound there, but it did go incredibly smoothly. It was a revolution, but a surprisingly peaceful one. Interestingly enough, the head of the Tokugawa shogunate quickly surrendered, not because he thought they would lose, but because he partly agreed with the revolutionaries and also he wanted to avoid bloodshed. Unfortunately news traveled slowly in those days, and many of his followers kept fighting even after his surrender. But even then, it ended quickly and the samurai government that had led Japan for centuries changed to a modern one.
But January 3 carries a quieter irony.
It is also traditionally given as the birth date of Sakamoto Ryōma, the man whose behind-the-scenes vision and political brokerage helped make that restoration possible, yet who did not live to see it.
Ryōma was assassinated in 1867, just months before the new order was proclaimed. He left no official post, no title, no role in the Meiji government itself. And yet his fingerprints are everywhere: the Satsuma–Chōshū alliance which led the revolution, the idea of abolishing the shogunate without plunging Japan into endless civil war, and even early notions of constitutional government.
History remembers January 3 for the proclamation. But nthe proclamation often overshadows the man who helped clear the path for it never walked into the new era at all.
In that sense, today marks both an ending and Japan’s rebirth, and the quiet shadow of the man who made it thinkable.
By the way, if you read my post yesterday, you might be thinking what animal/element year was 1868. It was an Earth Dragon (戊辰). And it was a very dragon year! Rupture, renewel, and unleashed energy — all very dragon symbols.
❦
 |
David is an American teacher and translator lost in Japan, trying to capture the beauty of this country one photo at a time and searching for the perfect haiku. He blogs here and at laspina.org. Write him on Bluesky. |